Coexistence of multiple radio technologies in a shared frequency band

ABSTRACT

Novel techniques are described for coexistence of multiple radio technologies in a shared frequency band. Techniques described herein enable multiple radiofrequency networks using different radio technologies to coexist on a same carrier frequency by exploiting various frequency- and/or time-domain sharing of scheduled resources. For example, data signals are received for transmission over different radio networks according to different radio technologies (having different respective sub-carrier definitions and timeslot definitions). A coexistence resource schedule is computed from the communication resource grids define an allocation of sub-carrier and/or timeslot resources among the radio technologies. Radio technologies can then be generated from the data signals in accordance with the coexistence resource schedule and the communication resource grids. The radio signals can then be transmitted over the radio networks, with the multiple radio technologies coexisting in orthogonal components of a communication channel.

CROSS-REFERENCES TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application is a continuation of U.S. patent application Ser. No.16/731,914, filed on Dec. 31, 2019, entitled “Coexistence Of MultipleRadio Technologies In A Shared Frequency Band,” the disclosure of whichis hereby incorporated by reference in its entirety for all purposes.

FIELD

This invention relates generally to radiofrequency communications, and,more particularly, to coexistence of multiple radio technologies in ashared frequency band.

BACKGROUND

Wireless spectrum is a limited resource with many competing demands onthe resource. Spectrum management techniques are carefully applied tofacilitate concurrent use of the spectrum by many entities whilelimiting interference between those uses. However, constant innovationsin spectrum use and management have been needed to keep up withever-increasing demands for spectrum (e.g., for bandwidth). For example,entities build out networks to communicate in different frequencies withdifferent radio technologies in accordance with different standards.However, recent technological convergences are tending to push differentradio technologies into similar frequency bands. For example, televisionbroadcasters have begun communicating over-the-air digital broadcasttelevision in accordance with the ATSC 3.0 radio technology standard.Under ATSC 3.0, television channels can be broadcast using the samefrequency bands as those being used for mobile communications, such asunder 3GPP. Such convergences can create new opportunities for entities,but also create new challenges for spectrum management and networkdesign.

BRIEF SUMMARY

Among other things, embodiments provide novel systems and methods forcoexistence of multiple radio technologies in a shared frequency band.Techniques described herein enable multiple radiofrequency networksusing different radio technologies to coexist on a same carrierfrequency by exploiting various frequency- and/or time-domain sharing ofscheduled resources. For example, data signals are received fortransmission over different radio networks according to different radiotechnologies (having different respective sub-carrier definitions andtimeslot definitions). A coexistence resource schedule is computed fromthe communication resource grids define an allocation of sub-carrierand/or timeslot resources among the radio technologies. Radiotechnologies can then be generated from the data signals in accordancewith the coexistence resource schedule and the communication resourcegrids. The radio signals can then be transmitted over the radionetworks, with the multiple radio technologies coexisting in orthogonalcomponents of a communication channel.

According to one set of embodiments, a gateway system is provided forcoexistence of multiple radio technologies in a shared carrier. Thesystem includes: a receiver subsystem to receive a first data signal forcommunication via a first radio technology that defines a firstcommunication resource grid having a first sub-carrier definition and afirst timeslot definition, and to receive a second data signal forcommunication via a second radio technology that defines a secondcommunication resource grid having a second sub-carrier definition and asecond timeslot definition; a coexistence scheduler to compute acoexistence resource grid from the first communication resource grid andthe second communication resource grid to define a division oftransmission resources into a plurality of sub-carriers of a carrierfrequency according to a coexistence sub-carrier definition and into aplurality of timeslots according to a coexistence timeslot definition; afirst radio-technology-specific scheduler, coupled with the receiversubsystem and the coexistence scheduler and having the firstcommunication resource grid stored in communication therewith, togenerate a first radio signal by scheduling the first data signal toconsume a first subset of the sub-carriers and a first subset of thetimeslots of the coexistence resource grid in accordance with the firstradio technology; and a second radio-technology-specific scheduler,coupled with the receiver subsystem and the coexistence scheduler andhaving the second communication resource grid stored in communicationtherewith, to generate a second radio signal by scheduling at least aportion of the second data signal to consume a second subset of thesub-carriers and a second subset of the timeslots of a remaining portionof the coexistence resource grid subsequent to the scheduling the firstdata signal in accordance with the second radio technology.

According to another set of embodiments, a method is provided forcoexistence of multiple radio technologies in a shared carrier. Themethod includes: receiving a first data signal for communication via afirst radio technology that defines a first communication resource gridhaving a first sub-carrier definition and a first timeslot definition;receiving a second data signal for communication via a second radiotechnology that defines a second communication resource grid having asecond sub-carrier definition and a second timeslot definition;computing a coexistence resource grid from the first communicationresource grid and the second communication resource grid to define adivision of transmission resources into a plurality of sub-carriers of acarrier frequency according to a coexistence sub-carrier definition andinto a plurality of timeslots according to a coexistence timeslotdefinition; generating a first radio signal for transmission of thefirst data signal over the carrier frequency by scheduling the firstdata signal, according to the coexistence resource grid, to consume afirst subset of the sub-carriers and a first subset of the timeslots;and generating a second radio signal for transmission of the second datasignal over the carrier frequency by scheduling at least a portion ofthe second data signal to consume a second subset of the sub-carriersand a second subset of the timeslots of a remaining portion of thecoexistence resource grid subsequent to the scheduling the first datasignal.

This summary is not intended to identify key or essential features ofthe claimed subject matter, nor is it intended to be used in isolationto determine the scope of the claimed subject matter. The subject mattershould be understood by reference to appropriate portions of the entirespecification of this patent, any or all drawings, and each claim.

The foregoing, together with other features and embodiments, will becomemore apparent upon referring to the following specification, claims, andaccompanying drawings.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The present disclosure is described in conjunction with the appendedfigures:

FIG. 1 shows a communications environment to enable concurrentcommunications by multiple networks using different radio technologiesover a shared carrier, according to various embodiments;

FIG. 2 shows a first illustrative implementation environment ofcoexistence resource scheduling that exploits frequency-divisionmultiplexing, according to various embodiments;

FIG. 3 shows a second illustrative implementation environment ofcoexistence resource scheduling that exploits time-divisionmultiplexing, according to various embodiments;

FIG. 4 shows a third illustrative implementation environment ofcoexistence resource scheduling that exploits frequency- andtime-division multiplexing, according to various embodiments;

FIG. 5 provides a schematic illustration of embodiments of computersystems that can implement various system components and/or performvarious steps of methods provided by various embodiments; and

FIG. 6 shows a flow diagram of an illustrative method for coexistence ofmultiple radio technologies in a shared carrier, according to variousembodiments.

In the appended figures, similar components and/or features may have thesame reference label. Further, various components of the same type maybe distinguished by following the reference label by a second label(e.g., a lower-case letter) that distinguishes among the similarcomponents. If only the first reference label is used in thespecification, the description is applicable to any one of the similarcomponents having the same first reference label irrespective of thesecond reference label.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

Embodiments of the disclosed technology will become clearer whenreviewed in connection with the description of the figures herein below.In the following description, numerous specific details are set forth toprovide a thorough understanding of the present invention. However, onehaving ordinary skill in the art should recognize that the invention maybe practiced without these specific details. In some instances,circuits, structures, and techniques have not been shown in detail toavoid obscuring the present invention.

Turning to FIG. 1 , a communications environment 100 is shown to enableconcurrent communications by multiple networks using different radiotechnologies over a shared carrier, according to various embodiments.Wireless spectrum is a limited resource, with many competing demands onthe resource. Spectrum management techniques are carefully applied tofacilitate concurrent use of the spectrum by many entities whilelimiting interference between those uses. However, constant innovationsin spectrum management have been needed to keep up with ever-increasingdemands for spectrum (e.g., for bandwidth).

Generally, different regions of the spectrum (e.g., frequency bands) arereserved for particular uses. For example, a particular region may bededicated for higher power, longer range, higher bandwidth types ofcommunications, such as broadcast digital television and high-speedInternet media streaming; another region may be dedicated for lowerpower, shorter range, lower bandwidth types of communications, such asradiofrequency identification; and another region may be dedicated forlower power, shorter range, higher bandwidth types of communications,such as for broadband wireless local area networks (WLANs) built onwireless fidelity (WiFi), or the like. Such allocation of differentbands to different uses can tend to help avoid interference and provideother benefits.

Typically, an entity can receive a license (e.g., by purchase atauction) to use one or more carrier frequencies in a particular band fora particular use. The entity can then set up a communication networkaround implementing a radio technology standard that suits theparticular use. For example, a television company may purchase a licenseto use one or more carriers for broadcasting one or more televisionchannels in accordance with a broadcast television radio technology,such as a technology promulgated by the National Television SystemsCommittee (NTSC) or the Advanced Television Systems Committee (ATSC). Atthe same time, an Internet service provider may use one or more nearbycarriers (e.g., in the same frequency band) to implement a mobilewireless communications network using a different radio technology, suchas a technology promulgated by the Third Generation Partnership Project(3GPP).

Entities tend to build out different networks for different uses.Different radio technologies tend to have different transmissioncharacteristics (e.g., defined by their standard setting organizations)to provide benefits, such as optimizing spectrum resources for theparticular use or uses associated with that radio technology. Forexample, each radio technology standard can define modulating and/orcoding schemes, bandwidth requirements, schemes for dividing a carrierinto sub-carriers, schemes for using time slots, etc. As such, buildinga communication network for a licensed use tends to involve configuringencoding and decoding equipment to operate with the transmissioncharacteristics of the particular radio technology standard, as well asconfiguring transmission and reception equipment for communication atparticular power levels and carrier frequencies in accordance with thelicense.

Conventionally, broadcast television licenses have been granted tocertain entities at certain carriers frequencies, while mobile wirelessnetwork licenses have been granted to other entities at other carrierfrequencies. However, recent technological convergences are creating newopportunities for entities and new challenges for spectrum management.For example, television broadcasters have begun communicatingover-the-air digital broadcast television in accordance with the ATSC3.0 radio technology standard. Under ATSC 3.0, television channels canbe broadcast using the same frequency bands as those being used formobile communications, such as under 3GPP. Such convergences can createnew opportunities for entities, but also create new challenges forspectrum management and network design.

Embodiments described herein enable coexistence of multiple radiotechnologies in a shared frequency band. For example, embodiments enablemultiple radiofrequency networks using different radio technologies tocoexist on a same carrier frequency by exploiting various frequency-and/or time-domain sharing of scheduled resources. As illustrated, theenvironment 100 can include various content sources 155 in communicationwith various wireless radio networks 145 via a gateway system 105, eachwireless radio network 145 operating according to a particular radiotechnology (e.g., ATSC 3.0, 3GPP, etc.). Each content source 155 can beassociated with a particular one of the wireless radio networks 145.Within the gateway system 105, a receiver subsystem 150 can receive datasignals 157 from the content sources 155 and can pass each data signal157 to a respective radio-technology-specific scheduler 110 that isconfigured for the particular radio technology of the associatedwireless radio network 145. Such passing can involve passing each datasignal 157 directly to its respective radio-technology-specificscheduler 110 and then to a coexistence scheduler 130, or passing eachdata signal 157 to its respective radio-technology-specific scheduler110 via the coexistence scheduler 130. The radio-technology-specificschedulers 110 can communicate with a coexistence scheduler 130 togenerate a coexistence resource schedule 135. Eachradio-technology-specific scheduler 110 can then generate a respectiveradio signal 147 from the respective data signal 157 in accordance withthe coexistence resource schedule 135 and the particular radiotechnology of the associated wireless radio network 145. Each radiosignal 147 can then be transmitted by a transmitter subsystem 140 viaits associated wireless radio network 145.

Embodiments of the receiver subsystem 150 can receive multiple datasignals 157, such as a first data signal 157 a for communication via afirst radio technology and can receive a second data signal 157 b forcommunication via a second radio technology. As used herein, each “radiotechnology” corresponds to at least a transmission standard that definesa respective communication resource grid 115. Each communicationresource grid 115 can be composed of a sub-carrier definition and atimeslot definition. Accordingly, when a radio signal 147 iscommunicated in accordance with a particular radio technology at aparticular carrier frequency (e.g., corresponding to a broadcasttelevision channel, or the like), the communication resource grid 115defines how the carrier will be divided into sub-carriers and/or how abroadcast timeframe will be divided into timeslots. Some radiotechnologies can permit only a single sub-carrier definition and asingle timeslot definition, while other radio technologies can permitmultiple sub-carrier definitions and/or multiple timeslot definitions.For example, a particular radio technology may permit a carrier to bedivided optionally into 8,000, 16,000, or 32,000 sub-carriers. Thecommunication resource grids 115 can be configured to support suchoptions.

Some embodiments described herein operate in context of orthogonalfrequency-division multiplexing (OFDM) radio technologies andcorresponding communication resource grids 115 (e.g., includingorthogonal frequency-division multiple access (OFDMA) technologies, andother variations thereof). In OFDM technologies, communication resourcescan be allocated across both frequency and time dimensions. In thefrequency dimension, OFDM technologies encode digital data signals 157into sub-carriers according to a sub-carrier definition in which eachsub-carrier is orthogonal to its adjacent neighbors. In the timedimension, OFDM technologies can encode data into orthogonal timeslots.Implementations of OFDM technologies can use the same or differentsub-carrier assignments across different timeslots, thereby implementingfrequency-division multiplexing, time-division multiplexing, orfrequency- and time-division multiplexing. In some embodiments, at leastone of the radio technologies is a digital broadcast televisiontechnology, such as according to Advanced Television Systems Committee(ATSC) standards. In some embodiments, at least one of the radiotechnologies is a mobile wireless Internet technology, such as accordingto Third Generation Partnership Project (3GPP) standards.

For example, the first data signal 157 a is intended for transmissionvia a 6 Megahertz carrier of a first wireless radio network 145 a. Inthe first wireless radio network 145 a, the carrier is configured as anATSC 3.0 broadcast television channel, such that the data signal 157 ais to be encoded into a first radio signal 147 a in accordance with afirst communication resource grid 115 a defined by the ATSC 3.0standard. The second data signal 157 b is intended for transmission viathe same 6 Megahertz carrier of a second wireless radio network 145 b.In the second wireless radio network 145 b, the carrier is configured asa 3GPP Internet-of-things (IoT) channel, such that the data signal 157 bis to be encoded into a second radio signal 147 b in accordance with asecond communication resource grid 115 b defined by the 3GPP standard.In this example case, the first wireless radio network 145 a is atransmission-only (broadcast) network, while the second wireless radionetwork 145 b is a bi-directional network. In other cases, however, anyor all of the multiple wireless radio networks 145 can beone-directional, bi-directional, download-heavy (e.g., networks used forstreaming of Internet media), upload-heavy (e.g., some IoT sensornetworks), wide-band networks, narrow-band networks, etc.; so long as atleast some of the wireless radio networks 145 could not coexist on asingle carrier without the novel techniques described herein.

Embodiments of the receiver subsystem 150 receive the data signals 157(e.g., as digital data streams) from one or more content sources 155.The receiver subsystem 150 includes any suitable hardware and/orsoftware to facilitate receipt of the multiple data signals 157 from themultiple content sources 155. For example the receiver subsystem 150 isin communication with the one or more content sources 155 via anysuitable wired and/or wireless communication links, and the receiversubsystem 150 includes any suitable physical and/or logical ports,antennas, filters, amplifiers, protocol-enabling components, etc. Insome embodiments, the gateway system 105 is a single node incommunication with multiple content sources 155, such as via one or morededicated networks, backhaul networks, local networks, etc. For example,the gateway system 105 is a node of a television broadcast network thatis coupled with a broadcast television content source, and the gatewaysystem 105 is also coupled with an Internet backbone network. In otherembodiments, the gateway system 105 is distributed among multiple nodesof one or more networks with a high-precision synchronization betweenthe multiple nodes.

The receiver subsystem 150 can route the received data signals 157 tocorresponding radio-technology-specific schedulers 110. In someembodiments, such routing is facilitated by data embedded into the datasignals 157. For example, each data signal 157 can include metadata,tags, data structures, preambles, packet formats, or other informationthat explicitly or implicitly indicates to the receiver subsystem 150which radio-technology-specific scheduler 110 to use for that datasignal 157. In other embodiments, such routing is facilitated bytracking the data signals 157. For example, the routing can be based onthe content source 155 from which a data signal 157 was received, a port(logical or physical) of the receiver subsystem 150 at which the datasignal 157 was received, etc.

Each radio-technology-specific scheduler 110 can be associated with oneor more communication resource grids 115 for a particular radiotechnology. For example, ATSC 3.0 data can be routed by the receiversubsystem 150 to a radio-technology-specific scheduler 110 configuredfor scheduling in accordance with a communication resource grid 115configured for ATSC 3.0 networks. The communication resource grids 115can be stored by the associated radio-technology-specific schedulers110, and/or can be accessible to the radio-technology-specificschedulers 110 in any suitable manner. For example, eachradio-technology-specific scheduler 110 can be in communication with alocal or remote data store having the communication resource grids 115stored thereon. Each radio-technology-specific scheduler 110 can becoupled with the coexistence scheduler 130 and with the transmittersubsystem 140.

Embodiments of the coexistence scheduler 130 compute a coexistenceresource schedule 135 from the communication resource grids 115 of theradio-technology-specific scheduler 110. Computing the coexistenceresource schedule 135 can involve computing a division of transmissionresources into a plurality of sub-carriers of a carrier frequencyaccording to a coexistence sub-carrier definition and into a pluralityof timeslots according to a coexistence timeslot definition. Thecomputation seeks to generate the coexistence sub-carrier definition tosupport the sub-carrier definitions of the various communicationresource grids 115 for which coexistence is desired, and to generate thecoexistence timeslot definition to support the timeslot definitions ofthe various communication resource grids 115 for which coexistence isdesired. In some embodiments, the coexistence scheduler 130 can receive,from the receiver subsystem 150 and/or from each of multipleradio-technology-specific schedulers 110, a sub-carrier size (or a setof options for the sub-carrier size) according to the respectivesub-carrier definition and/or a timeslot size (or a set of options forthe timeslot size) according to the respective timeslot definition. Thecoexistence scheduler 130 can determine whether there are anydifferences among the sub-carrier sizes and/or timeslot sizes from thedifferent radio technologies. If so, the coexistence scheduler 130 cancompute a sub-carrier size and/or timeslot size that is compatible forall the radio technologies for which coexistence is desired. Forexample, the coexistence scheduler 130 can compute the coexistencesub-carrier size to be a common multiple (e.g., the least commonmultiple) of the sub-carrier sizes of the different radio technologies,and/or the coexistence scheduler 130 can compute the coexistencetimeslot size to be a common multiple (e.g., the least common multiple)of the timeslot sizes of the different radio technologies. As anotherexample, where each of the multiple radio technologies identifies a listof multiple supported sub-carrier sizes (and/or timeslot sizes), thecoexistence scheduler 130 can compute the coexistence sub-carrier size(and/or coexistence timeslot size) as one of multiple sub-carrier sizes(and/or timeslot sizes) that is listed as supported by all the radiotechnologies for which coexistence is desired.

Having defined an appropriate coexistence sub-carrier definition andcoexistence timeslot definition, the coexistence scheduler 130 canfurther define the coexistence resource schedule 135 as a paradigm inwhich to encode the multiple data signals 157 coextensively across thesub-carriers and timeslots. In some embodiments, such defining can befully static. In some such embodiments, bandwidth requirements of thedata signals 157 for the coexisting radio technologies can be generallyknown and fixed a priori; such that the coexistence scheduler 130 cancompute and maintain a static coexistence resource schedule 135 to havean optimized allocation of communication resources across the differentradio technologies in accordance with their respective bandwidthrequirements. In other embodiments, such defining can be opportunistic.In some such embodiments, bandwidth requirements of a subset of the datasignals 157 can be detected as the corresponding data signals 157 arereceived, and the coexistence scheduler 130 can allocate remainingresources opportunistically to one or more other of the radiotechnologies. In other embodiments, such defining can combine static,dynamic, and/or opportunistic scheduling. For example, a certain amountof communication resources (e.g., sub-carriers and/or timeslots) isreserved for a first radio technology, a second amount of communicationresources is dynamically allocated to ensure sufficient resourceavailability for a second radio technology, and any remainingcommunication resources are opportunistically allocated to one or moreother radio technologies. As described herein, the various types ofresource allocations of the coexistence resource schedule 135 caninvolve allocation of sub-carriers (e.g., as a frequency-divisionmultiplexing implementation) and/or allocation of timeslots (e.g., as atime-division multiplexing implementation).

In some embodiments, each radio-technology-specific schedulers 110 canuse the coexistence resource schedule 135 to encode its respective datasignal 157 into a respective radio signal 147 in accordance with itsrespective radio technology (and corresponding communication resourcegrid 115). For example, a first radio-technology-specific scheduler 110a, coupled with the receiver subsystem 150 and the coexistence scheduler130 and having the first communication resource grid 115 a stored incommunication therewith, generates a first radio signal 147 a byscheduling the first data signal 157 a to consume a first subset of thesub-carriers of the coexistence sub-carrier definition and a firstsubset of the timeslots of the coexistence timeslot definition inaccordance with the first radio technology. A secondradio-technology-specific scheduler 110 b, coupled with the receiversubsystem 150 and the coexistence scheduler 130 and having the secondcommunication resource grid 115 b stored in communication therewith,generates a second radio signal 147 b by scheduling the second datasignal 157 b to consume a second subset of the sub-carriers of thecoexistence sub-carrier definition and a second subset of the timeslotsof the coexistence timeslot definition in accordance with the secondradio technology. In some implementations, the secondradio-technology-specific scheduler 110 b performs its scheduling byscheduling at least a portion of the second data signal 157 b to consumethe second subset of the sub-carriers and the second subset of thetimeslots of a remaining portion of the coexistence resources subsequentto the scheduling of the first data signal 157 a by the firstradio-technology-specific scheduler 110 a (e.g., the second schedulingis dynamic and/or opportunistic). Depending on the coexistence resourceschedule 135, the first and second subsets of the sub-carriers caninclude the same or different sub-carriers, and/or the first and secondsubsets of the timeslots can include the same or different timeslots.The generation of the radio signals 147 by the radio-technology-specificschedulers 110 can involve any suitable techniques for assigningparticular data to particular sub-carriers and timeslots. For example,the radio-technology-specific schedulers 110 can use the coexistenceresource schedule 135 as a mask to effectively blank out encoding of itsrespective data signal 157 in any sub-carriers and/or timeslots whereoverlap would otherwise occur.

For the sake of illustration, suppose a data signal is beingconventionally encoded into an OFDM radio signal, and suppose the OFDMresource grid is defined to have 1000 sub-carriers and 1000 timeslots. Aconventional scheduler receives a packet of the data signal, slices thepacket into small chunks, fills the sub-carriers sequentially with thechunks, and transmits. Ideally, all the sub-carriers would always befilled with data from the data stream in all timeslots. However, this istypically not the case. For example, ATSC 3.0 uses adaptive codingtechniques, and other OFDM technologies can employ other types ofadaptive and/or dynamic encoding, which can result in the data signalsconsuming a changing amount of bandwidth at different times. If the sizeof the received packet consumes, say, 2700 sub-carriers, theconventional scheduler may fill 2 full timeslot columns (of 1000sub-carriers each) and a partial third timeslot column (with theremaining 700 sub-carriers-worth of data). When transmitted, there willbe 300 sub-carriers left over, which is effectively wastage of thecommunication resources. To implement the coding (i.e., to allow theencoding mathematics to function properly), such conventional schedulerstend to fill those 300 remaining sub-carriers with junk data. In somecases, so-called statistical multiplexing (“stat-muxing”), or othertechniques are used to minimize the number of carriers that get filledwith junk data. However, even such techniques do not tend to eliminatethe junk data completely, and still result in wastage.

According to the embodiments described herein, some or all of thewastage can be filled with data from coexisting radio technologies.Referring to the preceding example, suppose the above data signal is anATSC 3.0 packet, and a small wireless fidelity (WiFi) packet is receivedat substantially the same time that consumes only 250 sub-carriers-worthof resources. Instead of filling the remaining 300 sub-carriers withjunk data, 250 of the 300 sub-carriers can be filled with data from theWiFi packet, leaving only 50 sub-carriers to fill with junk data. As arelated example, suppose the WiFi packet consumes 1,200sub-carriers-worth of resources. Instead of filling the remaining 300sub-carriers with junk data, the rest of that timeslot column plus 900sub-carriers in the next timeslot column can be filled with the WiFidata, leaving only 100 sub-carriers to fill with junk data.

Having generated the radio signals 147 in accordance with the coexistingradio technologies, the radio signal 147 can be passed to thetransmitter subsystem 140. The transmitter subsystem 140 can transmitthe radio signals 147 wirelessly via the carrier over the multiplewireless radio networks 145. For example, the transmitter subsystem 140includes at least one radiofrequency antenna. In some embodiments, themultiple wireless radio networks 145 are physically separate networkinfrastructures. For example, each wireless radio network 145 has itsown transmitters, receivers, and intermediate nodes (e.g., towers,etc.). Such an implementation can be useful, for example, where thedifferent radio technologies are being used to implement networks withappreciably different characteristics (e.g., with appreciably differentbandwidth, different transmission power, different uplink/downlinkdistribution, etc.). In other embodiments, some or all of the multiplewireless radio networks 145 utilize a shared network infrastructure. Forexample, the radio signals 147 can be communicated between the samereceivers and transmitters, but the received radio signals 147 aredecided using decoders configured for the particular radio technology.Such an implementation can be useful, for example, where the differentradio technologies are being used for similar purposes (e.g., one radiotechnology is being used for digital broadcast media, and another isbeing used for digital streaming Internet media). In these or otherembodiments, because the multiple radio technologies are being encodedinto a common carrier on orthogonal sub-carriers and/or timeslots, asingle technology-agnostic receiver can be used for both radiotechnologies. For example, the multiple radio signals 147 can bereceived by a single software-defined radio and separately decoded.

FIGS. 2-4 show illustrative implementations of coexistence resourcescheduling that exploit frequency- and/or time-division multiplexing.FIG. 2 shows a first illustrative implementation environment 200 ofcoexistence resource scheduling that exploits frequency-divisionmultiplexing, according to various embodiments. The illustratedenvironment 200 includes a number of components described with referenceto FIG. 1 , including the coexistence scheduler 130 in communicationwith a first radio-technology-specific scheduler 110 a and a secondradio-technology-specific scheduler 110 b. While only tworadio-technology-specific schedulers 110 are shown, otherimplementations can include more than two radio-technology-specificschedulers 110. Each radio-technology-specific scheduler 110 has anassociated communication resource grid 115, which includes a respectiveset of sub-carrier rows 210 and timeslot columns 220 defined inaccordance with respective sub-carrier definitions and respectivetimeslot definitions (e.g., defined by standards for the associatedradio technologies). The coexistence scheduler 130 is illustrated ascomputing a coexistence resource schedule 135, which is also illustratedas a coexistence resource grid having coexistence sub-carrier rows 210 cand coexistence timeslot columns 220 c. In the illustrated scenario, thecommunication resource grids 115 of the two radio technologies have thesame sub-carrier and timeslot sizes, such that the coexistence resourcegrid can similarly have the same sub-carrier and timeslot sizes. Asdescribed herein, however, there can be scenarios in which thecommunication resource grids 115 of the two radio technologies havedifferent sub-carrier and/or timeslot sizes, such that computing thecoexistence resource grid can involve determining appropriate sizes forthe coexistence sub-carriers and coexistence timeslots.

The coexistence scheduler 130 can divide the communication resources forallocation among the radio technologies by allocating a first subset ofthe coexistence sub-carrier rows 210 c in each coexistence timeslotcolumn 220 c to the first radio technology, and allocating a second(e.g., remaining) subset of the coexistence sub-carrier rows 210 c ineach coexistence timeslot column 220 c to the second radio technology.In some embodiments, the coexistence scheduler 130 can have a knownbandwidth allocation for the first radio technology. In one suchembodiment, the first radio-technology-specific scheduler 110 a hasadvanced knowledge (e.g., by a few seconds), or a prediction, of anamount of bandwidth needed to transmit its data signals 157, and theradio-technology-specific scheduler 110 a informs the coexistencescheduler 130 of the known or predicted upcoming bandwidth. In anothersuch embodiment, the first radio technology is associated with a fixedbandwidth, such as a guaranteed throughput. In some embodiments, thenumber of coexistence sub-carrier rows 210 c allocated to the secondradio technology is whatever remains after allocating to the first radiotechnology. In other embodiments, the number of coexistence sub-carrierrows 210 c allocated to the second radio technology is also computed.One such embodiment uses an algorithm to ensure that, over a timewindow, at least a first amount of sub-carrier bandwidth is allocated tothe first radio technology and at least a second amount of sub-carrierbandwidth is allocated to the second radio technology, even if more orless is allocated during portions of the time window. Another suchembodiment uses an algorithm to ensure fairness over a time window, suchthat substantially equal amounts of sub-carrier bandwidth are allocatedto both radio technologies, even if more or less is allocated duringportions of the time window. In the illustrated scenario, appreciablymore of the coexistence sub-carrier rows 210 c are allocated to thefirst radio technology in each coexistence timeslot column 220 c thanare allocated to the second radio technology. For example, such ascenario can represent a high-definition digital broadcast televisionnetwork (e.g., based on ATSC 3.0) having relatively high bandwidth needscoexisting with an IoT network (e.g., based on 3GPP) having relativelylow bandwidth needs (e.g., particularly in the downlink direction).

In some cases, the actual bandwidth requirements of one or both radiotechnologies may not fill what is allocated, predicted, etc. Forexample, as illustrated, the same number of coexistence sub-carrier rows210 c is assigned to the first radio technology in each coexistencetimeslot column 220 c. However, when the first radio-technology-specificscheduler 110 a encodes its data signal 157 a, the third timeslot of itscommunication resource grid 115 a is only partially filled, leaving aremaining sub-carrier 225. In some implementations, in such a scenario,the radio-technology-specific scheduler 110 a would fill the remainingsub-carrier 225 with junk data. As such, there can still be some wastagein some cases.

After the coexistence scheduler 130 has computed the coexistenceresource schedule 135, the communication resource assignments (e.g., thecoexistence sub-carrier rows 210 c and coexistence timeslot columns 220c) can be passed to the radio-technology-specific schedulers 110. Thefirst radio-technology-specific scheduler 110 a can generate its radiosignal 147 a by encoding its data signal 157 a in accordance with itsallocated coexistence sub-carrier rows 210 c in each timeslot, andfurther in accordance with its own communication resource grid 115 a, asneeded. The second radio-technology-specific scheduler 110 b cansimilarly generate its radio signal 147 b by encoding its data signal157 b in accordance with its allocated coexistence sub-carrier rows 210c in each timeslot, and further in accordance with its own communicationresource grid 115 b, as needed. The radio-technology-specific schedulers110 can also apply any other coding, modulation, etc. in accordance withits associated radio technology. The radio signals 147 can be sent tothe transmitter subsystem 140 (not shown) for communication via therespective wireless radio networks 145. In some cases, the transmittersubsystem 140 further configures the radio signals 147 for transmission,for example, by applying filtering, amplification, additional modulationand/or coding, etc. When the radio signals 147 are transmitted, thefirst and second radio technologies coexist in the same carrier by usingorthogonal sets of sub-carriers. In this way, the radio signals 147 formultiple wireless radio networks 145 (with the same or differentphysical infrastructure) can be transmitted effectively as a single OFDMtransmission on a single carrier.

FIG. 3 shows a second illustrative implementation environment 300 ofcoexistence resource scheduling that exploits time-divisionmultiplexing, according to various embodiments. The illustratedenvironment 300 is similar to the environment 200 described withreference to FIG. 2 , and embodiments, implementations, and variationsdescribed with reference to FIG. 2 can generally be applied to theenvironment 300 of FIG. 3 with modification from frequency-division totime-division. As such, for the sake of expediency, the description ofFIG. 3 focuses on the differences between environment 300 andenvironment 200. In particular, the coexistence scheduler 130 in FIG. 3can divide the communication resources for allocation among the radiotechnologies by allocating all of the coexistence sub-carrier rows 310 cin each of a first subset of coexistence timeslot columns 320 c to thefirst radio technology, and allocating all the coexistence sub-carrierrows 310 c in each of a second (e.g., remaining) subset coexistencetimeslot column 320 c to the second radio technology. As describedabove, such division can be based on known and/or predicted bandwidthallocations, static and/or dynamic allocations, algorithms seekingparticular goals (e.g., on average) over time, etc.

After the coexistence scheduler 130 has computed the coexistenceresource schedule 135, the communication resource assignments (e.g., thecoexistence sub-carrier rows 310 c and coexistence timeslot columns 320c) can be passed to the radio-technology-specific schedulers 110. Thefirst radio-technology-specific scheduler 110 a can generate its radiosignal 147 a by encoding its data signal 157 a in accordance with itsallocated coexistence timeslot columns 320 c, and further in accordancewith its own communication resource grid 115 a, as needed. The secondradio-technology-specific scheduler 110 b can similarly generate itsradio signal 147 b by encoding its data signal 157 b in accordance withits allocated coexistence timeslot columns 320 c, and further inaccordance with its own communication resource grid 115 b, as needed.The radio-technology-specific schedulers 110 and/or transmittersubsystem 140 can apply any other coding, modulation, filtering,amplification, etc. to prepare the radio signals 147 for transmissionover the wireless radio networks 145. When the radio signals 147 aretransmitted, the first and second radio technologies coexist in the samecarrier by using orthogonal sets of timeslots. In this way, the radiosignals 147 for multiple wireless radio networks 145 (with the same ordifferent physical infrastructure) can be transmitted effectively as asingle OFDM transmission on a single carrier.

FIG. 4 shows a third illustrative implementation environment 400 ofcoexistence resource scheduling that exploits frequency- andtime-division multiplexing, according to various embodiments. Theillustrated environment 400 is similar to the environments 200 and 300described with reference to FIGS. 2 and 3 , and embodiments,implementations, and variations described with reference to FIGS. 2 and3 can generally be applied to the environment 400 of FIG. 4 withmodification for both frequency-division and time-division. As such, forthe sake of expediency, the description of FIG. 4 focuses on thedifferences between environment 400 and environments 200 and 300. Inparticular, the coexistence scheduler 130 in FIG. 4 can divide thecommunication resources for allocation among the radio technologies byallocating different subsets of the coexistence sub-carrier rows 410 cin each coexistence timeslot column 420 c to the first radio technology,and allocating other subsets of the coexistence sub-carrier rows 410 cin each coexistence timeslot column 420 c to the second radiotechnology.

Embodiments following the environment 400 of FIG. 4 can be used toimplement opportunistic, or otherwise dynamic, allocation. In some suchembodiments, the first radio-technology-specific scheduler 110 amonitors bandwidth requirements of its incoming data signals 157. In oneimplementation, the first radio-technology-specific scheduler 110 amonitors the incoming data signals 157 themselves to measure an amountof data to be encoded in accordance with its communication resource grid115 a. In another implementation, the first radio-technology-specificscheduler 110 a receives additional signals from one or more contentsources 155 to indicate an upcoming amount of data to be encoded inaccordance with its communication resource grid 115 a. In anotherimplementation, the first radio-technology-specific scheduler 110 amonitors characteristics of a communication link between the receiversubsystem 150 and one or more content sources 155 to determine apredicted amount of data to be encoded in accordance with itscommunication resource grid 115 a. For example, the data signals 157 maybe encoded using adaptive video encoding, adaptive bit rate encoding, orother forms of compression, which can indicate a change in bandwidthrequirements for the incoming data signals 157.

The coexistence scheduler 130 can allocate appropriate portions of thecoexistence resource schedule 135 in accordance with the advancedknowledge (or prediction) of bandwidth requirements for the first radiotechnology. As described above, wastage can be reduced and/or otherfeatures can be realized by allocating according to frequency-divisionor time-division schemes, such as in FIGS. 2 and 3 . In some cases,configuring the coexistence scheduler 130 to allocate (to compute thecoexistence resource schedule 135) according to both frequency-divisionand time-division schemes can further reduce wastage and/or realizeother features.

For example, suppose each coexistence timeslot column 220 c of thecoexistence resource schedule 135 is divided into 1000 coexistencesub-carrier rows 210 c. A series of packets of data for the first radiotechnology (Packets 1-4) are determined to consume 800, 570, 400, and500 sub-carriers, respectively, and a series of packets of data for thesecond radio technology (Packets 5-8) are determined to consume 200,420, 580, and 500 sub-carriers, respectively. Suppose an implementationof the frequency-division scheme of FIG. 2 allocates 80 percent of thesub-carriers to the first radio technology. Regarding the first radiotechnology: Packet 1 can thus consume 800 sub-carriers (all) in timeslot1; Packet 2 can consume 570 sub-carriers in timeslot 2 (leaving 270wasted sub-carriers); Packet 3 can consume 400 sub-carriers in timeslot3 (leaving 400 wasted sub-carriers); and Packet 4 can consume 500sub-carriers in timeslot 4 (leaving 300 wasted sub-carriers). Regardingthe second radio technology: Packet 5 can thus consume the remaining 200sub-carriers (all) in timeslot 1; and Packet 6 can consume allsub-carriers in timeslots 2 and 3, and 20 of the sub-carriers intimeslot 4 (leaving an additional 180 wasted sub-carriers). Someimplementations may be able to schedule Packet 7, instead of Packet 6(out of order), thereby consuming all sub-carriers in timeslots 2 and 3,and 180 of the sub-carriers in timeslot 4 (leaving only an additional 20wasted sub-carriers).

Implementing the same example in an illustrative time-division scheme ofFIG. 3 can involve allocating 75 percent of the timeslots to the firstradio technology (e.g., three timeslots to the first radio technology,followed by one timeslot to the second radio technology). Regarding thefirst radio technology: Packet 1 can thus consume 800 sub-carriers intimeslot 1 (leaving 200 wasted sub-carriers); Packets 2 and 3 cantogether consume 970 sub-carriers in timeslot 2 (leaving 30 wastedsub-carriers); and Packet 4 can consume 500 sub-carriers in timeslot 3(leaving 500 wasted sub-carriers). Regarding the second radiotechnology: Packets 5 and 6 can together consume 620 sub-carriers oftimeslot 4 (leaving an additional 380 wasted sub-carriers). Someimplementations may be able to schedule Packets 6 and 7, instead ofPackets 5 and 6 (out of order), thereby consuming all 1000 sub-carriersin timeslot 4.

Implementing the same example in an illustrative frequency- andtime-division scheme of FIG. 4 can involve allocating the timeslots asfollows: timeslot 1 is divided into 800 sub-carriers for the first radiotechnology and 200 sub-carriers for the second radio technology;timeslot 2 is divided into 1000 sub-carriers for the first radiotechnology and no sub-carriers for the second radio technology; timeslot3 is divided into 1000 sub-carriers for the second radio technology andno sub-carriers for the first radio technology; and timeslot 4 isdivided into 500 sub-carriers for the first radio technology and 500sub-carriers for the second radio technology. Thus, Packet 1 (of thefirst radio technology) and Packet 5 (of the second radio technology)can be assigned to the first timeslot, thereby consuming all thesub-carriers in that timeslot by frequency-divided coexistence of thetwo radio technologies; Packets 2 and 3 (both of the first radiotechnology) can be assigned to the second timeslot, and Packets 6 and 7(both of the second radio technology) can be assigned to the thirdtimeslot, thereby consuming most of the sub-carriers in those timeslotsby time-divided coexistence of the two radio technologies (leaving only30 wasted sub-carriers in timeslot 2, and none in timeslot 3); andPacket 4 (of the first radio technology) and Packet 8 (of the secondradio technology) can be assigned to the fourth timeslot, therebyconsuming all the sub-carriers in that timeslot by frequency-dividedcoexistence of the two radio technologies.

As in FIGS. 2 and 3 , after the coexistence scheduler 130 in FIG. 4 hascomputed the coexistence resource schedule 135, the communicationresource assignments (e.g., the coexistence sub-carrier rows 410 c andcoexistence timeslot columns 420 c) can be passed to theradio-technology-specific schedulers 110. The firstradio-technology-specific scheduler 110 a can generate its radio signal147 a by encoding its data signal 157 a in accordance with its allocatedcoexistence sub-carrier rows 410 c and coexistence timeslot columns 420c, and further in accordance with its own communication resource grid115 a, as needed. The second radio-technology-specific scheduler 110 bcan similarly generate its radio signal 147 b by encoding its datasignal 157 b in accordance with its allocated coexistence sub-carrierrows 410 c and coexistence timeslot columns 420 c, and further inaccordance with its own communication resource grid 115 b, as needed.The radio-technology-specific schedulers 110 and/or transmittersubsystem 140 can apply any other coding, modulation, filtering,amplification, etc. to prepare the radio signals 147 for transmissionover the wireless radio networks 145. When the radio signals 147 aretransmitted, the first and second radio technologies coexist in the samecarrier by using orthogonal sets of sub-carriers and timeslots. In thisway, the radio signals 147 for multiple wireless radio networks 145(with the same or different physical infrastructure) can be transmittedeffectively as a single OFDM transmission on a single carrier.

Embodiments of the gateway system 105, and or components thereof, can beimplemented on, and/or can incorporate, one or more computer systems, asillustrated in FIG. 5 . FIG. 5 provides a schematic illustration ofembodiments of computer systems 500 that can implement various systemcomponents and/or perform various steps of methods provided by variousembodiments. It should be noted that FIG. 5 is meant only to provide ageneralized illustration of various components, any or all of which maybe utilized as appropriate. FIG. 5 , therefore, broadly illustrates howindividual system elements may be implemented in a relatively separatedor relatively more integrated manner.

The computer system 500 is shown including hardware elements that can beelectrically coupled via a bus 505 (or may otherwise be incommunication, as appropriate). The hardware elements may include one ormore processors 510, including, without limitation, one or moregeneral-purpose processors and/or one or more special-purpose processors(such as digital signal processing chips, graphics accelerationprocessors, video decoders, and/or the like); one or more input devices515, which can include, without limitation, a mouse, a keyboard, remotecontrol, and/or the like; and one or more output devices 520, which caninclude, without limitation, a display device, a printer, and/or thelike. In some implementations, the computer system 500 is a servercomputer configured to interface with additional computers (not withhuman users), such that the input devices 515 and/or output devices 520include various physical and/or logical interfaces (e.g., ports, etc.)to facilitate computer-to-computer interaction and control.

The computer system 500 may further include (and/or be in communicationwith) one or more non-transitory storage devices 525, which cancomprise, without limitation, local and/or network accessible storage,and/or can include, without limitation, a disk drive, a drive array, anoptical storage device, a solid-state storage device, such as a randomaccess memory (“RAM”), and/or a read-only memory (“ROM”), which can beprogrammable, flash-updateable and/or the like. Such storage devices maybe configured to implement any appropriate data stores, including,without limitation, various file systems, database structures, and/orthe like.

The computer system 500 can also include a communications subsystem 530,which can include, without limitation, a modem, a network card (wirelessor wired), an infrared communication device, a wireless communicationdevice, and/or a chipset (such as a Bluetooth™ device, an 802.11 device,a WiFi device, a WiMax device, cellular communication device, etc.),and/or the like. The communications subsystem 530 may permit data to beexchanged with a network, other computer systems, and/or any otherdevices described herein.

In many embodiments, the computer system 500 will further include aworking memory 535, which can include a RAM or ROM device, as describedherein. The computer system 500 also can include software elements,shown as currently being located within the working memory 535,including an operating system 540, device drivers, executable libraries,and/or other code, such as one or more application programs 545, whichmay include computer programs provided by various embodiments, and/ormay be designed to implement methods, and/or configure systems, providedby other embodiments, as described herein. Merely by way of example, oneor more procedures described with respect to the method(s) discussedherein can be implemented as code and/or instructions executable by acomputer (and/or a processor within a computer); in an aspect, then,such code and/or instructions can be used to configure and/or adapt ageneral purpose computer (or other device) to perform one or moreoperations in accordance with the described methods.

The computer system 500 is shown as implementing an illustrative gatewaysystem 105. As illustrated, the communications subsystem 530 can includethe receiver subsystem 150 and/or the transmitter subsystem 140.Accordingly, the communications subsystem 530 can be in communication(e.g., directly, via a network, etc.) with the content sources 155and/or with the wireless radio networks 145. The working memory 535 canbe used to implement embodiments of the radio-technology-specificschedulers 110, coexistence scheduler 130, and/or other components(e.g., including components of the receiver subsystem 150 and/or thetransmitter subsystem 140). For example, each such component can beimplemented as instructions, which, when executed, cause theprocessor(s) 510 to perform functions of those components. The storagedevices 525 and/or working memory 535 can be used to store thecoexistence resource schedule 135 and communication resource grids 115.

A set of these instructions and/or codes can be stored on anon-transitory computer-readable storage medium, such as thenon-transitory storage device(s) 525 described above. In some cases, thestorage medium can be incorporated within a computer system, such ascomputer system 500. In other embodiments, the storage medium can beseparate from a computer system (e.g., a removable medium, such as acompact disc), and/or provided in an installation package, such that thestorage medium can be used to program, configure, and/or adapt a generalpurpose computer with the instructions/code stored thereon. Theseinstructions can take the form of executable code, which is executableby the computer system 500 and/or can take the form of source and/orinstallable code, which, upon compilation and/or installation on thecomputer system 500 (e.g., using any of a variety of generally availablecompilers, installation programs, compression/decompression utilities,etc.), then takes the form of executable code.

It will be apparent to those skilled in the art that substantialvariations may be made in accordance with specific requirements. Forexample, customized hardware can also be used, and/or particularelements can be implemented in hardware, software (including portablesoftware, such as applets, etc.), or both. Further, connection to othercomputing devices, such as network input/output devices, may beemployed.

As mentioned above, in one aspect, some embodiments may employ acomputer system (such as the computer system 500) to perform methods inaccordance with various embodiments of the invention. According to a setof embodiments, some or all of the procedures of such methods areperformed by the computer system 500 in response to processor 510executing one or more sequences of one or more instructions (which canbe incorporated into the operating system 540 and/or other code, such asan application program 545) contained in the working memory 535. Suchinstructions may be read into the working memory 535 from anothercomputer-readable medium, such as one or more of the non-transitorystorage device(s) 525. Merely by way of example, execution of thesequences of instructions contained in the working memory 535 can causethe processor(s) 510 to perform one or more procedures of the methodsdescribed herein.

The terms “machine-readable medium,” “computer-readable storage medium”and “computer-readable medium,” as used herein, refer to any medium thatparticipates in providing data that causes a machine to operate in aspecific fashion. These mediums may be non-transitory. In an embodimentimplemented using the computer system 500, various computer-readablemedia can be involved in providing instructions/code to processor(s) 510for execution and/or can be used to store and/or carry suchinstructions/code. In many implementations, a computer-readable mediumis a physical and/or tangible storage medium. Such a medium may take theform of a non-volatile media or volatile media. Non-volatile mediainclude, for example, optical and/or magnetic disks, such as thenon-transitory storage device(s) 525. Volatile media include, withoutlimitation, dynamic memory, such as the working memory 535.

Common forms of physical and/or tangible computer-readable mediainclude, for example, a floppy disk, a flexible disk, hard disk,magnetic tape, or any other magnetic medium, a CD-ROM, any other opticalmedium, any other physical medium with patterns of marks, a RAM, a PROM,EPROM, a FLASH-EPROM, any other memory chip or cartridge, or any othermedium from which a computer can read instructions and/or code.

Various forms of computer-readable media may be involved in carrying oneor more sequences of one or more instructions to the processor(s) 510for execution. Merely by way of example, the instructions may initiallybe carried on a magnetic disk and/or optical disc of a remote computer.A remote computer can load the instructions into its dynamic memory andsend the instructions as signals over a transmission medium to bereceived and/or executed by the computer system 500.

The communications subsystem 530 (and/or components thereof) generallywill receive signals, and the bus 505 then can carry the signals (and/orthe data, instructions, etc., carried by the signals) to the workingmemory 535, from which the processor(s) 510 retrieves and executes theinstructions. The instructions received by the working memory 535 mayoptionally be stored on a non-transitory storage device 525 eitherbefore or after execution by the processor(s) 510.

It should further be understood that the components of computer system500 can be distributed across a network. For example, some processingmay be performed in one location using a first processor while otherprocessing may be performed by another processor remote from the firstprocessor. Other components of computer system 500 may be similarlydistributed. As such, computer system 500 may be interpreted as adistributed computing system that performs processing in multiplelocations. In some instances, computer system 500 may be interpreted asa single computing device, such as a distinct laptop, desktop computer,or the like, depending on the context.

Systems including those described above can be used to implement variousmethods. FIG. 6 shows a flow diagram of an illustrative method 600 forcoexistence of multiple radio technologies in a shared carrier,according to various embodiments. Embodiments of the method 600 begin atstage 604 by receiving a first data signal for communication via a firstradio technology that defines a first communication resource grid havinga first sub-carrier definition and a first timeslot definition. At stage608, embodiments can receive a second data signal for communication viaa second radio technology that defines a second communication resourcegrid having a second sub-carrier definition and a second timeslotdefinition. In some embodiments, the receiving at stages 604 and 608 areperformed substantially concurrently by a single gateway node of acommunications network.

At stage 612, embodiments can compute a coexistence resource grid fromthe first communication resource grid and the second communicationresource grid to define a division of transmission resources intosub-carriers of a carrier frequency according to a coexistencesub-carrier definition and into timeslots according to a coexistencetimeslot definition. In some embodiments, the computing at stage 612includes determining, prior to the scheduling the first data signal, asize of the first subset of the sub-carriers in accordance with apredetermined bandwidth allocation for the first data signal; andcomputing the coexistence resource grid to have a same coexistencesub-carrier definition for each of the plurality of timeslots byassigning the first subset of the sub-carriers for each timeslot of theplurality of timeslots to the first data signal (e.g., the schedulingthe first data signal, described below in stage 616 can be in accordancewith the assigning). In some embodiments, the computing at stage 612includes determining (e.g., prior to the scheduling the first datasignal in stage 616, as described below), a size of the first subset ofthe timeslots in accordance with a predetermined bandwidth allocationfor the first data signal; and computing the coexistence resource gridby assigning the all of the plurality of the sub-carriers to the firstdata signal only for each timeslot of the first subset of the timeslots.In some embodiments, the computing at stage 612 includes determining afirst sub-carrier size from the first sub-carrier definition;determining a second sub-carrier size from the second sub-carrierdefinition; and computing the coexistence resource grid to define thedivision of transmission resources into the plurality of sub-carriers,such that each of the plurality of sub-carriers has a coexistencesub-carrier size that is a common multiple of the first sub-carrier sizeand the second sub-carrier size. In some embodiments, the computing atstage 612 includes determining a first timeslot size from the firsttimeslot definition; determining a second timeslot size from the secondtimeslot definition; and computing the coexistence resource grid todefine the division of transmission resources into the plurality oftimeslots, such that each of the plurality of timeslots has acoexistence timeslot size that is a common multiple of the firsttimeslot size and the second timeslot size.

At stage 616, embodiments can generate a first radio signal fortransmission of the first data signal over the carrier frequency byscheduling the first data signal, according to the coexistence resourcegrid, to consume a first subset of the sub-carriers and a first subsetof the timeslots. At stage 620, embodiments can generate a second radiosignal for transmission of the second data signal over the carrierfrequency by scheduling at least a portion of the second data signal toconsume a second subset of the sub-carriers and a second subset of thetimeslots of a remaining portion of the coexistence resource gridsubsequent to the scheduling the first data signal. In some embodiments,the generating the second data signal at stage 620 includes determining,responsive to the scheduling the first data signal in stage 616, theremaining portion of the coexistence resource grid, andopportunistically scheduling the at least the portion of the second datasignal to consume the second subset of the sub-carriers and the secondsubset of the timeslots of the remaining portion responsive to thedetermining. In some embodiments, the first data signal is received atstage 604 from a first content source, and the first radio signal isgenerated at stage 616 for transmission over a first wireless networkconfigured according to the first radio technology; and the second datasignal is received at stage 608 from a second content source, and thesecond radio signal is generated at stage 620 for transmission over asecond wireless network configured according to the second radiotechnology. In some embodiments, the radio signals are generated atstages 616 and 620 to be orthogonal frequency-division multiplexing(OFDM) signals. For example, the first radio technology accords withAdvanced Television Systems Committee (ATSC) 3.0 standards; and thesecond radio technology accords with Third Generation PartnershipProject (3GPP) standards. In some embodiments, at stage 624, the method600 can transmit the first radio signal and the second radio signalconcurrently over the carrier frequency.

The methods, systems, and devices discussed above are examples. Variousconfigurations may omit, substitute, or add various procedures orcomponents as appropriate. For instance, in alternative configurations,the methods may be performed in an order different from that described,and/or various stages may be added, omitted, and/or combined. Also,features described with respect to certain configurations may becombined in various other configurations. Different aspects and elementsof the configurations may be combined in a similar manner. Also,technology evolves and, thus, many of the elements are examples and donot limit the scope of the disclosure or claims.

Specific details are given in the description to provide a thoroughunderstanding of example configurations (including implementations).However, configurations may be practiced without these specific details.For example, well-known circuits, processes, algorithms, structures, andtechniques have been shown without unnecessary detail in order to avoidobscuring the configurations. This description provides exampleconfigurations only, and does not limit the scope, applicability, orconfigurations of the claims. Rather, the preceding description of theconfigurations will provide those skilled in the art with an enablingdescription for implementing described techniques. Various changes maybe made in the function and arrangement of elements without departingfrom the spirit or scope of the disclosure.

Also, configurations may be described as a process which is depicted asa flow diagram or block diagram. Although each may describe theoperations as a sequential process, many of the operations can beperformed in parallel or concurrently. In addition, the order of theoperations may be rearranged. A process may have additional steps notincluded in the figure. Furthermore, examples of the methods may beimplemented by hardware, software, firmware, middleware, microcode,hardware description languages, or any combination thereof. Whenimplemented in software, firmware, middleware, or microcode, the programcode or code segments to perform the necessary tasks may be stored in anon-transitory computer-readable medium such as a storage medium.Processors may perform the described tasks.

Having described several example configurations, various modifications,alternative constructions, and equivalents may be used without departingfrom the spirit of the disclosure. For example, the above elements maybe components of a larger system, wherein other rules may takeprecedence over or otherwise modify the application of the invention.Also, a number of steps may be undertaken before, during, or after theabove elements are considered.

What is claimed is:
 1. A system comprising: a receiver subsystem toreceive a first data signal formatted for communication according to afirst communication resource grid having a first sub-carrier definitionand a first timeslot definition, and to receive a second data signalformatted for communication according to a second communication resourcegrid having a second sub-carrier definition and a second timeslotdefinition, the second communication resource grid being different fromthe first communication resource grid; a coexistence scheduler tocompute a coexistence resource grid from the first communicationresource grid and the second communication resource grid to define adivision of transmission resources into a plurality of sub-carriers of acarrier frequency according to a coexistence sub-carrier definition andinto a plurality of timeslots according to a coexistence timeslotdefinition; and a transmitter subsystem to concurrently transmit thefirst data signal as a first radio signal and the second data signal asa second radio signal wirelessly over the carrier frequency inaccordance with the coexistence sub-carrier definition and thecoexistence timeslot definition.
 2. The system of claim 1, wherein: thereceiver subsystem is to receive a plurality of data signals comprisingthe first data signal and the second data signal, each of the pluralityof data signals formatted for communication according to a differentrespective one of a plurality of communication resource grids, each ofthe plurality of communication resource grids having a respectivesub-carrier definition and a respective timeslot definition; thecoexistence scheduler is to compute the coexistence resource grid fromthe plurality of communication resource grids to define the division oftransmission resources into the plurality of sub-carriers according tothe coexistence sub-carrier definition and into the plurality oftimeslots according to the coexistence timeslot definition; and thetransmitter subsystem is to concurrently transmit the plurality of datasignals as a plurality of radio signals comprising the first radiosignal and the second radio signal wirelessly over the carrier frequencyin accordance with the coexistence sub-carrier definition and thecoexistence timeslot definition.
 3. The system of claim 1, furthercomprising: a first scheduler, coupled with the coexistence scheduler togenerate the first radio signal by scheduling the first data signal toconsume a first subset of the sub-carriers and a first subset of thetimeslots of the coexistence resource grid in accordance with the firstcommunication resource grid; and a second scheduler, coupled with thecoexistence scheduler to generate the second radio signal by schedulingthe second data signal to consume a second subset of the sub-carriersand a second subset of the timeslots of the coexistence resource grid inaccordance with the second communication resource grid.
 4. The system ofclaim 3, wherein: the coexistence scheduler is to compute further by:determining a size of the first subset of the sub-carriers in accordancewith a predetermined bandwidth allocation for the first data signal; andcomputing the coexistence resource grid to have a same coexistencesub-carrier definition for each of the plurality of timeslots byassigning the first subset of the sub-carriers for each timeslot of theplurality of timeslots to the first data signal, thereby leaving aremaining portion of the coexistence resource grid; the first scheduleris to schedule the first data signal according to the assigning; and thesecond scheduler is to opportunistically schedule at least a portion ofthe second data signal to consume the second subset of the sub-carriersand the second subset of the timeslots of the remaining portion of thecoexistence resource grid.
 5. The system of claim 3, wherein thecoexistence scheduler is to compute further by: receiving, from thefirst scheduler, a first sub-carrier size of the first sub-carrierdefinition and a first timeslot size of the first timeslot definition;receiving, from the second scheduler, a second sub-carrier size of thesecond sub-carrier definition and a second timeslot size of the secondtimeslot definition; determining whether the second sub-carrier sizediffers from the first sub-carrier size and/or the second timeslot sizediffers from the first timeslot size; and computing the coexistenceresource grid to define the division of transmission resources into theplurality of sub-carriers and into the plurality of timeslots, suchthat: in response to determining that the second sub-carrier sizediffers from the first sub-carrier size, each of the plurality ofsub-carriers is computed to have a coexistence sub-carrier size that isa common multiple of the first sub-carrier size and the secondsub-carrier size; and in response to determining that the secondtimeslot size differs from the first timeslot size, each of theplurality of timeslots is computed to have a coexistence timeslot sizethat is a common multiple of the first timeslot size and the secondtimeslot size.
 6. The system of claim 1, wherein the first sub-carrierdefinition is different from the second sub-carrier definition.
 7. Thesystem of claim 1, wherein the first timeslot definition is differentfrom the second timeslot definition.
 8. The system of claim 1, whereinthe first data signal is received via a first radio technology thatdefines the first communication resource grid, and the second datasignal is received via a second radio technology that defines the secondcommunication resource grid, the second radio technology being differentfrom the first radio technology.
 9. The system of claim 1, wherein thetransmitter subsystem is to transmit the first radio signal and thesecond radio signal as orthogonal frequency-division multiplexing (OFDM)signals.
 10. A method comprising: receiving a first data signal and asecond data signal, the first data signal formatted for communicationaccording to a first communication resource grid having a firstsub-carrier definition and a first timeslot definition, and the seconddata signal formatted for communication according to a secondcommunication resource grid having a second sub-carrier definition and asecond timeslot definition, the second communication resource grid beingdifferent from the first communication resource grid; computing acoexistence resource grid from the first communication resource grid andthe second communication resource grid to define a division oftransmission resources into a plurality of sub-carriers of a carrierfrequency according to a coexistence sub-carrier definition and into aplurality of timeslots according to a coexistence timeslot definition;and transmitting, concurrently, the first data signal as a first radiosignal and the second data signal as a second radio signal wirelesslyover the carrier frequency in accordance with the coexistencesub-carrier definition and the coexistence timeslot definition.
 11. Themethod of claim 10, wherein: the receiving comprises receiving aplurality of data signals including the first data signal and the seconddata signal, each of the plurality of data signals formatted forcommunication according to a different respective one of a plurality ofcommunication resource grids, each of the plurality of communicationresource grids having a respective sub-carrier definition and arespective timeslot definition; the computing comprises computing thecoexistence resource grid from the plurality of communication resourcegrids to define the division of transmission resources into theplurality of sub-carriers according to the coexistence sub-carrierdefinition and into the plurality of timeslots according to thecoexistence timeslot definition; and the transmitting comprisesconcurrently transmitting the plurality of data signals as a pluralityof radio signals including the first radio signal and the second radiosignal wirelessly over the carrier frequency in accordance with thecoexistence sub-carrier definition and the coexistence timeslotdefinition.
 12. The method of claim 10, further comprising: generatingthe first radio signal by scheduling the first data signal to consume afirst subset of the sub-carriers and a first subset of the timeslots ofthe coexistence resource grid in accordance with the first communicationresource grid; and generating the second radio signal by scheduling thesecond data signal to consume a second subset of the sub-carriers and asecond subset of the timeslots of the coexistence resource grid inaccordance with the second communication resource grid.
 13. The methodof claim 12, wherein: the computing comprises: determining a size of thefirst subset of the sub-carriers in accordance with a predeterminedbandwidth allocation for the first data signal; and computing thecoexistence resource grid to have a same coexistence sub-carrierdefinition for each of the plurality of timeslots by assigning the firstsubset of the sub-carriers for each timeslot of the plurality oftimeslots to the first data signal, thereby leaving a remaining portionof the coexistence resource grid; the generating the first radio signalcomprises scheduling the first data signal according to the assigning;and the generating the second radio signal comprises opportunisticallyscheduling at least a portion of the second data signal to consume thesecond subset of the sub-carriers and the second subset of the timeslotsof the remaining portion of the coexistence resource grid.
 14. Themethod of claim 12, wherein the computing comprises: receiving, inassociation with the generating the first radio signal, a firstsub-carrier size of the first sub-carrier definition and a firsttimeslot size of the first timeslot definition; receiving, inassociation with the generating the second radio signal, a secondsub-carrier size of the second sub-carrier definition and a secondtimeslot size of the second timeslot definition; determining whether thesecond sub-carrier size differs from the first sub-carrier size and/orthe second timeslot size differs from the first timeslot size; andcomputing the coexistence resource grid to define the division oftransmission resources into the plurality of sub-carriers and into theplurality of timeslots, such that: in response to determining that thesecond sub-carrier size differs from the first sub-carrier size, each ofthe plurality of sub-carriers is computed to have a coexistencesub-carrier size that is a common multiple of the first sub-carrier sizeand the second sub-carrier size; and in response to determining that thesecond timeslot size differs from the first timeslot size, each of theplurality of timeslots is computed to have a coexistence timeslot sizethat is a common multiple of the first timeslot size and the secondtimeslot size.
 15. The method of claim 10, wherein the first sub-carrierdefinition is different from the second sub-carrier definition and/orthe first timeslot definition is different from the second timeslotdefinition.
 16. The method of claim 10, wherein the first data signal isreceived via a first radio technology that defines the firstcommunication resource grid, and the second data signal is received viaa second radio technology that defines the second communication resourcegrid, the second radio technology being different from the first radiotechnology.
 17. A system comprising: one or more processors; and anon-transient memory having instructions stored thereon which, whenexecuted, cause the one or more processors to perform steps comprising:receiving a first data signal and a second data signal, the first datasignal formatted for communication according to a first communicationresource grid having a first sub-carrier definition and a first timeslotdefinition, and the second data signal formatted for communicationaccording to a second communication resource grid having a secondsub-carrier definition and a second timeslot definition, the secondcommunication resource grid being different from the first communicationresource grid; computing a coexistence resource grid from the firstcommunication resource grid and the second communication resource gridto define a division of transmission resources into a plurality ofsub-carriers of a carrier frequency according to a coexistencesub-carrier definition and into a plurality of timeslots according to acoexistence timeslot definition; and transmitting, concurrently, thefirst data signal as a first radio signal and the second data signal asa second radio signal wirelessly over the carrier frequency inaccordance with the coexistence sub-carrier definition and thecoexistence timeslot definition.
 18. The system of claim 17, wherein theinstructions, when executed, cause the one or more processors to performsteps further comprising: generating the first radio signal byscheduling the first data signal to consume a first subset of thesub-carriers and a first subset of the timeslots of the coexistenceresource grid in accordance with the first communication resource grid;and generating the second radio signal by scheduling the second datasignal to consume a second subset of the sub-carriers and a secondsubset of the timeslots of the coexistence resource grid in accordancewith the second communication resource grid.
 19. The system of claim 18,wherein: the computing comprises: determining a size of the first subsetof the sub-carriers in accordance with a predetermined bandwidthallocation for the first data signal; and computing the coexistenceresource grid to have a same coexistence sub-carrier definition for eachof the plurality of timeslots by assigning the first subset of thesub-carriers for each timeslot of the plurality of timeslots to thefirst data signal, thereby leaving a remaining portion of thecoexistence resource grid; the generating the first radio signalcomprises scheduling the first data signal according to the assigning;and the generating the second radio signal comprises opportunisticallyscheduling at least a portion of the second data signal to consume thesecond subset of the sub-carriers and the second subset of the timeslotsof the remaining portion of the coexistence resource grid.
 20. Thesystem of claim 18, wherein the computing comprises: receiving, inassociation with the generating the first radio signal, a firstsub-carrier size of the first sub-carrier definition and a firsttimeslot size of the first timeslot definition; receiving, inassociation with the generating the second radio signal, a secondsub-carrier size of the second sub-carrier definition and a secondtimeslot size of the second timeslot definition; determining whether thesecond sub-carrier size differs from the first sub-carrier size and/orthe second timeslot size differs from the first timeslot size; andcomputing the coexistence resource grid to define the division oftransmission resources into the plurality of sub-carriers and into theplurality of timeslots, such that: in response to determining that thesecond sub-carrier size differs from the first sub-carrier size, each ofthe plurality of sub-carriers is computed to have a coexistencesub-carrier size that is a common multiple of the first sub-carrier sizeand the second sub-carrier size; and in response to determining that thesecond timeslot size differs from the first timeslot size, each of theplurality of timeslots is computed to have a coexistence timeslot sizethat is a common multiple of the first timeslot size and the secondtimeslot size.